Use of the cell division assay to diagnoseFanconianemia patients' hypersensitivity to mitomycinC

The recently reported cell division assay (CDA) was optimized to measure the relative sensitivity of cells to cytotoxic drugs in vitro. Here, we investigated the in vitro hypersensitivity of lymphocytes from Fanconi anemia (FA) patients, to cytotoxic drugs using CDA. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) as well as cell lines derived from FA patients were treated with two DNA interstrand crosslinking (ICL) agents, mitomycin C and cyclophosphamide. Our data indicate that the CDA detects hypersensitivity of cells from FA patients to mitomycin C. Further, cell lines derived from FA-patients were also hypersensitive to mitomycin C as well as cyclophosphamide, when assayed by the CDA. This study suggests that the CDA is a useful alternative for the diagnosis of FA patients' hypersensitivity to ICL agents.

Automated summary

The study found that lymphocytes from Fanconi anemia patients are hypersensitive to mitomycin C. Cell lines derived from FA patients were also found to be hypersensitive to both mitomycin C and cyclophosphamide when tested with CDA. The CDA is shown to be a useful alternative for diagnosing FA patients' hypersensitivity to ICL agents.